The Titan
by Icaruss
Summary: Ray Miller is your average University student who is suddenly thrust into a world of heroes and villains. As he makes his way along his own epic quest he shall interact and learn from the Marvels he had grown to admire.
1. Chapter 1

The gentle glow of the morning sun washed over towers of steel and glass. A foghorn sounded as the docks began to come alive with the new day. Ships with tall masts and rowdy crews gently drifted through the water, carrying their wares to and from the Manhattan port. The salty air swept over the wooden piers and ramshackle buildings along the docks. Hardened sailors went about their business, as well as two young men traversing the scene that morning.

One of the boys held a camera in his hand, with which he would capture the tranquil scene. He was a small, scrawny fellow with large inquisitive eyes and a wry grin on his face. He had light brown skin and close cropped black hair, but it was certainly his grin that was his most striking feature. It was small and crooked, but betrayed a sort of introspective awe for the world around him.

His companion was tall, with a muscular frame, fair skin, and a mop of blonde hair. This man's general demeanor was much rowdier and alive. From his gait to his smirk, every action seemed to be a resonating boom. Certainly there wasn't a stranger pair walking through the docks on that peaceful morning.

"Did you know France was having a problem with exploding frogs a few months ago," Ray Miller mused, snapping a picture of one of the sailors pausing for a cigarette.

"Didn't exactly hear about that, seems the US news had a bit more to worry about than France's exploding frogs," Jason Albright scoffed. He peered across the horizon at the water, impatiently waiting for his friend to take his pictures. "I thought we had come out here to get a few shots of mutant town, not this… harbor or whatever."

Ray continued to take shots of boats and sailors, silent, as if he was mulling over Jason's comment. "I have enough pictures of empty streets and scared people. You can only handle so much depression before you need to take something else in." Ray continued to snap pictures of the harbor around him, taking in the view and basking in its liveliness. "Aren't you going to ask why the frogs were exploding?"

Jason sighed; kicking at an empty beer can on the ground. It was obvious that he didn't share his friend's calmer demeanor. "I don't know… magic, mutants, or something? The world has been on its head lately. Mutants are all but gone, there was a superhero civil war, an alien invasion… I don't even know what type of world we're living in anymore and you want me to muse about why some French frogs were exploding?" At this point Jason just seemed irritated, giving another beer can a strong kick off the peer.

"And why does any of that bother you," Ray asked, as calmly as ever, his voice exhibiting the slightest hint of curiosity. "For you my pictures are just something to go with your article for the Banner. All this stuff in the news… it's all sensation. The dust is settling just like it always does when the Gods do battle."

Jason gave his friend a hard pat on the back, shaking his head slowly, as if surprised Ray couldn't see his point of view. "I care because when these "gods" do battle they affect my life and the people I love. These pictures aren't just for our crappy school newspaper, they're for the people. You may see empty streets and scared people, I see Mutant town as a symbol of a changing world. Some day people will wake up and realize it's time we do away with superheroes and go back to letting the good ol' boys in blue take care of us."

Ray paused, taking his eye away from the camera. He looked at Jason, member of the Empire State University Basketball team, a headlining reporter for the ESU Banner, and the son of a relatively wealthy family. Here was a guy who had the world handed to him on a silver platter and all he saw was sensation with the way the world was changing. The world was rocking and he was riding the tide.

"Do you really believe that? Superheroes can't be perfect, everything that's going on now… it's because we don't trust them. The superhero registration act, the mutant incident, heck maybe even the Skrull invasion… It sure was the reason Osborn ended up in charge for the while," Ray sighed, his brow knit with concern. "People are running around scared and we're paying the price for it."

"No offense Ray but you're an Engineer, you probably see the world as parts and pieces. People are more complicated than that, life is more complicated than that," Jason snapped. "You want to see scared people, just look at the superhero community. The Avengers, our so called "mightiest heroes" are all disassembled and spread out over a dozen different, fighting teams."

"That's not their fau-"

"No, I'm going to explain something. It's people like you and me, normal people, which rule the world. We want to get through all this nonsense, we have to stop putting these so called heroes on a pedestal and really show them as they are. They're not marvels… they're monsters that are tearing us apart as a country." He jabbed a finger in the direction of Ray's camera. "The pictures on that camera are proof of that; my article is proof of that."

Ray pursed his lips, letting his camera hang down his neck as he stared down the dock. Everything in that scene just seemed perfectly constructed, a collection of shapes, and machines, all with their own function and purpose. Sometimes the tranquility of a scene like this just made so much more sense than life.

"I know you idolize those guys in masks," Jason sighed, undeterred by Ray's silence. "I've seen those Spider-Man pictures you clip from the Bugle, the Avengers pictures… the Giant-Man pictures. The pictures are plastered all around our dorm room like they were damn models. Hell, you're the only person I know crazy enough to try and understand that whole Pym Particle nonsense. The thing of it is Ray, these are just people, and they're playing a dangerous game where innocents are going to get hurt."

For yet another moment Ray was silent, allowing his friend's words to sink in. "It was a bird," Ray finally spoke up. "It was injecting them with poison that was causing them to explode."

"What?"

"The French exploding frogs, it was a poisonous bird that was doing it. Go figure, sometimes weird situation have equally strange reasons behind them." With that comment Ray snapped a picture of Jason's reluctant smirk.

"You know, you are perhaps the strangest person I know," Jason sighed. The man shoved his hands into his pocket, going back to overlooking the water.

"I try my best," Ray retorted. He shot a quick glance down at his cell phone, noting the time. "My first class of the day is starting soon, I better run back to campus and change. Strangely it seems that most people don't enjoy the smell of salt and rotten fish," Ray quipped.

Jason took a whiff of the air and crinkled his nose with disapproval. "I can't imagine why."

Ray waved goodbye and began a light jog down the length of the dock. As he bounded through New York's busy streets his eyes were looking up. Above him was the air through which heroes flew, Spider-man swung, and battles over the fate of the cities inhabitants were fought. He uttered a few apologies as he bustled past people, clutching his camera to his chest and readjusting the bag on his back.

Ray shot another look down at his cell phone, groaning as he realized just how close he was cutting it to class time. He bounded through the bustling pathways, eventually making it to a subway stop. Leaping a few steps at a time he made his way down into the warm underground. With a flash of metro card he was soon standing on the train platform waiting for the next train to come.

As he stood on the platform he looked around, amused at the way the people around him were digging their faces deep into books and newspapers. All were so desperate to completely forget about the people around them and Ray was just fine with that. He understood the constant need and wants to disappear into a crowd and just allow himself to melt away into it. He had never been one for being the center of attention, in the city though it was easy to just lose yourself. To every other resident and guest of New York, he was just another face in the crowd.

Ray boarded the subway train and was soon on his way to the Empire State University Campus, in Queens. He took the time, sitting in the dimly lit train car to review the pictures he had taken. They were nothing special, but photography was a hobby of his that he had been more interested in ever since coming to University. Being a freshman Ray was just looking for ways to spend his time, ways to broaden his horizons. Photography, music, superheroes, these were just the things that helped him pass the time.

The ride passed by quickly, with minimal awkward contact with other people. Ray kept his eyes facing downwards as he shuffled odd the train and towards his next destination. Once out of the subway station again he made the brisk walk to the University campus. He took in the familiar sights as he made his way towards his dorm. Cyclists zoomed by and other students chatted loudly as they made their way through university streets. The University certainly did feel like a home away from home for the young photographer.

He walked into the old building that served as his residence hall. Ray offered a few shy salutations as he passed by familiar faces and up to his room. Unlocking his door he walked into a mess of a room. Both Jason and his clothes littered the floor and various pieces of furniture. Computer and other machine parts laid scattered around the desks, as well as a variety of books and photographs. Unfortunately Ray wasn't very organized to begin with and with Jason, his best friend since High School, their room had devolved into utter chaos.

The student placed his camera on his desk and began to rummage through his closet for fresh clothes to change into. As he freshened up he glanced at his wall of sticky notes, photographs, and newspaper articles. It was a wall exhibiting all of the things of the moment that interested Ray or otherwise caught his attention. They detailed both minute tasks for him to do, as well as news of global proportions. If anything the wall was a good metaphor for Ray's mind, a wild mess of news, ideas, and confusion.

One particular sticky note caught his attention, written in bright red sharpie against the yellow square of paper. DINNER WITH MOM TODAY, DON'T FORGET! Ray couldn't help but smile thinking about it. His Mother lived in the Forrest Hills community of Queens, it was for the most part a very pleasant community but due to economic hardship his mother was staying in a boarding house in a slightly seedier part of town. Ray figured that a nice home cooked meal with his mother would be a good end to the day.

Ray sat for a moment on his bed, swiping a picture off his desk. It was a photo from his High School graduation. There in the background he could see the large entrance of Midtown High School. There was his mother's and his own smiling face. Karen Miller's face was beaming here, her toothy grin exhibiting a sort type of exotic air. Her gaunt visage also showed the years of stress and worry that life had pounded into her.

Ray ran his finger over the photo with a small, sad smile on his face. His mother had always been a fighter, providing everything that he needed even after his Dad died when he was only four years old. She made sure that he never had to do without, and all throughout imprinted her strict moral sense into him. Now that he had flown the nest Ray felt he would have to start providing for her now. Sure, he had only been in college for about a month at that point but he felt a new sense of responsibility.

He placed the picture back on his desk and began the process of shoving his books into his bag, there was nothing like an early morning college algebra class to really get one excited for the day ahead. He tossed the bag on his back and grabbed the camera from his desk as he exited his room once again. He glanced at his phone for the third time that morning, confident that he had enough time until his class to simply relax a little and grab a bite to eat.

Strolling through the university campus Ray made a stop at one of the diners and began to snack on a muffin absentmindedly. He grabbed an old copy of the Banner off a table and began to leaf through the pages, Sure enough there were more than a few of his pictures featured on the pages, just as they would be tomorrow.

Most of the news was the same old drivel that came from most campus papers. There was an article on raising the cost of tuition, the scandal behind book prices, and all sorts of topics writers thought students would find interesting. One article in particular did manage to capture the young man's attention though. It was a small piece on the reformation of some super-villain team known as the Lethal Legion. From the sound of it in light of the current turmoil in the superhero community, three costumed kooks getting together to talk smack about the Avengers seemed to be small fries. All the same Ray read on, allowing the wonder of the world around him to keep him entertained.


	2. Chapter 2

Ray Miller was engrossed in reading an old copy of the Empire State University Banner, the very paper for which he was a photographer. He had been caught up reading a story of super villainy of some sort or other, leaving behind the mundane quality of his life for the interest and intrigue of the superhuman community.

Absentmindedly he plucked his cell phone from his pocket to check the time and jumped with shock. It seemed that his time perusing the newspaper had been a lot longer than he had originally thought, and he was late for his first class of the day. With a flustered worry Ray gathered up his belongings and made a mad dash for the diner exit.

Clutching his camera and bag to his chest, Ray ran down the campus streets with a muffin shoved into his mouth. He simply couldn't believe that he managed to forget about his class, of course it wasn't unusual for him. Ray Miller was not exactly known for his punctuality, one might even say he was habitually and predictably late for just about everything.

As he bolted through the campus the young student managed to collide with a person heading in the opposite direction. Books and papers flew everywhere, as well as his prized camera. With a surprising feat of agility Ray leapt for the falling piece of equipment, managing to catch it in his cupped hands. With a relieved sigh, he turned to see just who it was that he managed to bowl over in his mad dash for class.

Dusting herself off was a girl, with a shock of shoulder length blond hair and a rather annoyed expression on her face. She adjusted herself and shook her head in Ray's general direction. The young man couldn't help but mutter out some unintelligible apology as he picked up his belongings. The girl seemed to take pity on him and began to help him gather his dropped possessions.

"What are you lost?" she asked, her annoyance replaced with an abrupt kind of pity.

"Yah, s-s-sorry about that," Ray stuttered. It was a horrible habit but when nervous or in exceptionally awkward situations Ray had a tendency to develop a stutter. "I was t-t-rying to g-get to class."

"Oh I couldn't tell by the books," the girl retorted sarcastically. "Don't sweat it, this campus seems a bit difficult to get around. I'm just here picking up something for my boyfriend and I feel lost."

"O-oh r-really?" Ray stuttered quietly. The girl brushed hair out of her face as she shoved books into his arms. He was more trying to avoid awkwardness by continuing the conversation but his general demeanor only seemed to increase it.

"Yup, some professor here has something that he wanted to take a look at. I don't know computer stuff and all," she explained with a shrug. "By the way my name's Cassie," she introduced herself, extending a hand. "Sorry if I'm not great with introductions but I'm still shaking off being run over after all."

"S-sor-sorry," Ray apologized again, now with all his belongings back in his hands. "I'm Ray," he introduced himself with a sheepish shrug.

"Like I said, don't worry about it, and it's very nice to meet you Ray. Now I've got to run, people to see and places to go, you know the deal," she explained with a wave. "Try not to barrel into anyone else on your way wherever."

Ray paused for a moment, watching her leave and recalled the class that he was supposed to be rushing to at that moment. Back on track Ray made his way down the campus and to the building housing his algebra class. Quietly and cautiously he made his way into the lecture hall and scanned the room for a place to sit.

There were about two hundred students crammed into the tight room and from the looks of it, seating was limited. Hurriedly Ray scanned the area, class was going to start soon and he wanted to avoid angering his professor within the first weeks of school. His eyes eventually fell on a person he had known from high school. They hadn't been friends but it was some familiarity. As Ray tried to make his way in that direction, people plopped down in the seats he was aiming for.

His old classmate saw him and gave him a shrug and smile, the universal sign for "sorry, better luck next time." Ray sighed, going back to scanning the room and cursing his whole inability to function in social situations.

"Sir, can you grab a seat so I can begin my lecture?" the gray professor muttered grumpily as he adjusted the projector. Besides the professor stood another, younger man; a brunette with an infectious grin and bright eyes. It took him a moment but Ray recognized him as Peter Parker, he had taught a section of Biology at his old high school. Ray began to wonder what he was doing here in a college algebra classroom at ESU. "Young man, did you hear me?" the professor growled slightly louder.

"Yes s-sir!" Ray nodded as he sat down in the closest vacant seat. It looked like he would have to endure whatever embarrassment that came with this new seat mate, it was either that or stand in the middle of the aisle the whole class. As he took out his notebook and a pen Ray continued to ponder the presence of Mr. Parker.

"You know him too?" a voice rang out beside him. Ray turned to see a girl sitting in the seat next to him. She was a pretty thing, with blond hair framing her face, a thin lipped smile, and bright green eyes. Ray turned, to ensure that she wasn't in fact talking to someone in the immediate vicinity of himself. "Mr. Parker, do you know him too?" she asked once again.

"Oh, y-yah. He was a b-biology teacher at m-m-my high school," Ray stuttered. Silently he was begging for his voice to level out so he wouldn't have to sound like an idiot.

"Midtown High right? I went there too, I actually had him for a teacher," she explained in a rather enthusiastic tone. "I wonder what he's doing here, I mean this is college algebra, not exactly bio." The girls whole demeanor just seemed bright and bubbly, a great contrast to Ray's more awkward self.

"I d-don't know, maybe he's l-looking for s-s-someone or something?" Ray suggested quietly, shoving his nose into his notebook.

"Hmm, maybe," the girl nodded. "I loved him as a teacher, he was actually really funny. I'm a bit of a joker myself," the girl smirked. Ray looked back up from his notebook; it seemed that just trying to bury himself wasn't going to free him up from conversation. He had to admit, she did seem rather engaging. She plucked an orange from her purse and held it up next to her face and grinned. "Orange you glad you decided to sit next me?"

Ray couldn't help but let out a laugh, trading his normally more reserved reactions for a simple laugh. The whole thing just seemed so absurd and this girl was just soaking it all up. He smirked, shaking his head.

"Thank you, thank you, I'm here all week," she laughed herself. "You don't talk much do you?"

"S-s-sorry, just not good around n-new people," Ray paused as if mulling over his statement. "Well I g-guess I'm just not good around p-people in general. Well anyways, my name is Ray." The young man figured the least he could do was make an effort at conversation, the girl didn't seem like a threat in any case and she had gone to Midtown as well.

"Pleasure to make your acquaintance Ray," she grinned. "Well I don't see why you would be bad around people, you seem to be a little _ray_ of sunshine to me," she quipped with a wink. Ray grinned, shaking his head. "My names Alice; let's see I'm a biology major, love animals, and someday I want to work for Stark Industries as a researcher. Now you say some interesting things."

Ray raised his eyebrows, and thought for a moment. "I'm an el-electrical engineer, I should ac-actually probably be taking a higher level math class but t-trouble with Midtown and my test scores," Ray rambled. "I want to work for Stark Industries someday too," he told her with a shy smile. His eyes wandered back down to the podium where he saw Mr. Parker leaving the room.

"Young man, maybe you better find a seat where you would be less talkative," the professor shouted up at Ray. With surprise the young man stood, gathering his belongings and began searching out another seat. He turned around and offered an apologetic shrug to Alice, actually genuinely disappointed he had to move. She just twirled the orange around her fingers and shot him a smirk.

The rest of class passed without incident. Ray spent most of the time doodling on a piece of paper waiting for the professor to slowly and monotonously explain the difference between national and irrational numbers. Class came to an end and the students shuffled out, there was no sign of Alice.

Solitarily Ray made his way through the building, and was soon passing by a professor's office, the door slightly ajar. Normally Ray would have simply passed by the door without a second thought but from the office the words "lethal legion" caught his attention. Attempting to look as nonchalant as possible, Ray paused by the office and strained his ears to try and catch who was talking and about what.

As students passed by Ray made sure to drop his attention to the ground, and tried to look as if he had a reason to be standing in that specific spot. One of the voices streaming from the other was unrecognizable but the other he knew to belong to Mr. Parker. Only bits and pieces of their conversation were coming through and Ray found it odd that he was still standing there. Certainly people discussed the superhuman community without there being any secret agenda or thing of intrigue.

The student was about to leave when Mr. Parker walked out of the office and spotted him. Their eyes met and both men shared a look of surprise.

"Oh hey, there," Parker greeted as he looked about the bustling hallway. "Are you here to see Professor Gerrich?"

"Er-n-no," Ray muttered as he promptly turned around and began to walk down the hallway with the other students. He turned to see Parker just shrug his shoulders and leave in the opposite direction. It certainly wasn't the best way to end a conversation but it sure was effective. Ray figured a visit to his Mom may actually get his mind off everything, all these thoughts on superheroes and awkward social interaction were obviously getting to him.

Ray walked back to his dorm room and placed his things down, winding down after a rather mind numbing math lecture. He plopped down on his bed and flicked on the small television that he and Jason shared. Ray knew Jason was probably at class so he'd have the room to himself for at least a short while.

On the tv he made out the bright logo of the local news, which was promptly replaced by a video feed. On the screen was three costumed individuals apparently committing a bank robbery. Two of them Ray recognized immediately as the Grey Gargoyle and the Absorbing Man. There was a third who he wasn't familiar with, a sort of large blue hulking figure with a face that resembled a Japanese Oni.

Ray sat entranced as he watched the super villains do battle with New York's finest. Vaguely he began to wonder why a superhero wasn't showing up to deal with these wrong doers. It then occurred to him that this was the same Lethal Legion that he had read about earlier, the same non entity made up of washed up villains and apparently a new one to the game.

The scene switched to a pretty news anchor, grinning widely at the camera. Her face was caked in makeup; of course Ray just assumed that was normal in the media business. "That was the scene earlier today on the First National bank on 34th and 7th," she reported diligently. "The villains are still at large and thankfully he brave officers combating them did not sustain any casualties."

She turned to her co-anchor, a man with a grin that seemed large enough to scare off a dinosaur. "So Tom, what do you have to say about the fact there were no superheroes present to combat these dangerous individuals?" she asked, her voice both inquisitive and sickeningly saccharine. "Well Mary, I think we can attribute it to-"

Ray turned off the tv and dropped down to lie in his bed. He was absolutely tired of hearing the arguments about superheroes, super hero registration and the like. It was maddening that everyone in the country seemed to be caught in a constant state of bickering over the state of the world. Ray just longed for the old days of sueprheroics. He recalled all the stories his grandfather would tell him about Captain America and the Invaders during World War II. These were real heroes. All that was left of that Golden Age was bickering and politics.

Ray turned over on his pillow, mentally going through the list of things he had to do that day. His mind wandered, as he began to imagine himself as a superhero. He wouldn't be caught up in the politics of the current situation, he'd march right into the center of any conflict and fight the good fight as any superhero should.

With a small smile, he sat up and plucked a picture off the wall. It was a view of Giant-Man walking overhead. It really was an incredible picture, something which showed the sheer power of the Marvels that inhabited their world. The picture was caught by a famous photographer for his aptly named book Marvels. As Ray stared at the picture he found himself hoping that someday he would do something deserving of the title, marvel.

He jumped to his feet and headed back out the door. He couldn't just sit back and ponder possibilities all day, he had life to live and classes to attend.


End file.
